This article, by Lance Merz, was featured in the June issue of the Mack Attack Magazine. Sign up for FREE today.
Walleye fishing on the Columbia River
is a destination hot spot for anglers who seek this predatory fish. In fact, most walleye anglers will tell you
that if you can catch a walleye, you can catch just about any species of
fish. Over the past two years,
Departments of Fish and Wildlife in Washington
and Oregon have lifted the limits while
fishing the Lower Columbia for these
fish. Studies are showing that walleye
are eating the Salmon and Steelhead smolts and they want to eliminate the
species all together. Only one rod is
authorized per angler, but there is plenty of fish to be had for all.
I had the opportunity to fish with Mack’s Lure Pro Staff
Angler Ted Beach, a professional Walleye angler whose knowledge compares to
that of an encyclopedia. When Ted talks
about fishing, people listen. He gives
various seminars throughout Washington
each year and loves to teach how to fish" and there is an art to fishing this
species of fish. We launched in an area
of the Lower Columbia, just below the McNary
Dam in a place called Crowe Butte. We
were fishing in attempts to find some fish to catch for a TV show that was to
be aired the next day with Northwest Fishing Reports (NWFR). Due to the harsh winter that was felt by all,
the current of the river was moving quite fast.
Instead of moving into the main current, Ted sought his attention to
areas of the river where the current wasn’t as swift. Normally, these areas are closer to the shore and
range in depths of 5- to 25-feet. We were
trolling with bottom walkers with a 5- to 6-foot leader, primarily using Double
Whammy® Walleye and Smile Blade® Super Slow Death Rigs tipped with a night
crawler.
It wasn’t long after we started trolling that the first fish
of the day came into the boat, a 16” walleye that knocked the funk off the
boat.
A slow troll downstream revealed a few more fish in the live
well; this was going to be a good day!
There are parts of the Columbia River
that can be very intimidating and if you’ve never been on that particular area
of the river, I’d recommend going out with a guide who knows the water. There are parts where channels are very
shallow, which can take out a lower unit very easily. There are even areas of the middle of the
river that can be as shallow at six inches.
Ted and fished throughout the day; a fish here and a fish
there. The fishing was consistent, but
it wasn’t lights out for sure. The water
temperature for fishing for walleye was still a bit chilly (57 degrees), and
the clarity of the water was color of chocolate milk.
Then the wind picked up.
It is imperative that if you’re operating a boat on the Columbia River that you are aware of the weather
conditions at the time you are going to fish.
Without warning, the chop on the water can produce 5-6’ swells and
without enough knowledge of boat operations, it could be catastrophic. Since the wind was so sever on the main
channel, Ted decided to tuck into a slough which protected us from the
wind. Not only did we start to catch
walleye, be we also began catching Smallmouth Bass and Perch as well. Since walleye are a predatory fish, catching
these other species was a good sign.
The next day, we decided to fish in another area of the
river, adjacent to the town of Plymouth, Washington. Ted made this decision because the forecast
was calling for wind gusts of up to 22mph that day as well as rain. We met with the crew of Northwest Fishing Reports
and began to film the show. Mike Carey,
owner of the NWFR jumped in the boat with Ted and I, and his crew was in
another boat fishing as well. We
launched the boat and the conditions were perfect; calm with no rain. We decided to take advantage of the early
morning by fishing what Ted called the “Plymouth Slough”, a branch of the Columbia just off the
main channel of the river which if needed, could protect us from the gusts
which were coming. The fishing was
consistent and again, we were all using Double Whammy® Walleye crawler harnesses
and Smile Blade® Super Slow Death Rigs.
The hot Smile Blade® of the day however, was the UV Glo® Burst, which
produces a tremendous amount of flash and attraction even in murky waters.
We pushed the limits and decided to fish just below the
McNary Dam. There was only one guide
boat on the water and the preferred method was to troll up to the border (a
line just below the dam that no one is allowed) and drifted down. All but one chute was open at the dam and the
water was swift to say the least. Even
without the wind, swells were consistent at five to six feet. A few more walleye were caught in this area
before the wind picked up, which forced us back down to the slough, which
produced more fish in the rain. In all,
40 fish were caught in a two day period.
Ted is an excellent teacher.
I learned a different way to rig up the walleye rod and even learned a
new way to thread a worm on a hook. What
I learned the most from Ted, was that preparation is essential when fishing for
walleye. As with any other fishery,
having the line in the water longer will eventually lead to more fish. Ted’s boat was filled with additional tackle
and riggings that made it very easily to slide off each lure to try a different
color.
That same week, Bob Loomis and Richy Harrod took their shot
at fishing the Lower Columbia as well. They fished in an area of the Columbia adjacent to Biggs,
Oregon, in a place called “Peach Beach”. Trolling was the preferred method, just off
the main channel using Wally Pop® Crawler harnesses, as well as Double Whammy® Walleye and the Smile Blade® Super Slow Death Rig.
Although there are no limits on parts of the Lower Columbia River, it doesn’t mean that all fish have
to be caught. I have seen first hand where
anglers will go out fishing a catch in excess of 100 fish or more in one
day. In my opinion, catch what you’re
going to eat. Set a limit for your boat
which will allow other anglers the ability to catch fish as well.
This article, by Lance Merz, was featured in the June issue of the Mack Attack Magazine. Sign up for FREE today.